1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a mounting apparatus for storage device, and particularly to a mounting apparatus which facilitates installation and removal of data storage device.
2. Description of the Related Art
A number of different methods and devices are used to mount data storage devices, such as disk drives or CD-ROMs, in a computer. One method that was widely used in the past was to simply screw the data storage device directly into a cage whereby the data storage device was secured in the computer. Changing the device was cumbersome because side or top panels, or other components close beside the cage had to be removed in order to remove the screws. New developments facilitate installation and removal of data storage devices. These include the use of guide rail type devices, such as those described below.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,262,923 and Taiwan Patent Application Nos. 78201813, 79209891 disclose devices employing guide rails for mounting data storage devices. However, the rails used in these devices are complicated and manufacturing the opposite side rails requires two sets of dies, which contributes significantly to the cost of these devices. Moreover, the side rails are attached to their data storage device by conventional screws. The problem of the time-consuming and cumbersome task of tightening or loosening screws is still not resolved.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,599,080 discloses a mounting device for a data storage device without screws. Its data storage device is secured by pushing pins integral with the rail into side holes in the data storage device. The pins are thin and flexible, and are rather easily bent during operations such as removing the data storage device from the computer. Once the pins become bent, subsequent alignment and reconnection of the data storage device to the cage can be quite difficult.
A data storage mounting device disclosed by Taiwan Patent Application No. 83202972 also has no screws. Its rail fastener is a spring metal thread whose two ends are bent for insertion through the rail and into the side holes of the data storage device. However, the spring metal thread is readily deformed, which may result in unreliable mounting. The second embodiment of Taiwan Patent Application No. 83202972 discloses an arrangement where the data storage device is directly attached to the cage of the computer by a spring metal thread. However, other devices or panels close to the cage create the problem of inconvenient access to the thread for installation or removal of the data storage device.
Therefore, there is a need for an improved apparatus for easily installing and removing data storage devices which overcomes the above-mentioned problems.